Using the F word in a documentary about bullying

[Jack21222]

I just read an article by Roger Ebert about how a documentary should be rated:

http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2012/03/even_as_i_write_on.html

This looks like an important documentary, particularly for teens to see. But, the MPAA has slapped an R rating on it because it uses the F word a few too many times unless the film bleeps some instances of that word in order to bring it back down to a PG-13 rating. I feel that bleeping that word would somehow neuter the message of the documentary. The kids out there being bullied hear that word all the times in school from their tormentors. The parents should have to hear what their kids are hearing without it first being sterilized first.

Many others feel the same way that I do.

http://entertainment.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/13/10655561-kids-cant-see-anti-bullying-film-due-to-r-rating

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/13/3488959/depp-streep-join-call-to-lower.html

And this article gives an interesting debate about movie ratings in general, noting that The Hunger Games movie, about a teenage deathmatch, only received a PG-13 rating.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/19/3500438/the-hunger-games-bully-prompt.html

I guess kids are allowed to kill each other, as long as they don't say "f***" while doing it.

What do you think?

 

[ThomasT]

I just read an article by Roger Ebert about how a documentary should be rated:

http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2012/03/even_as_i_write_on.html

This looks like an important documentary, particularly for teens to see. But, the MPAA has slapped an R rating on it because it uses the F word a few too many times unless the film bleeps some instances of that word in order to bring it back down to a PG-13 rating. I feel that bleeping that word would somehow neuter the message of the documentary. The kids out there being bullied hear that word all the times in school from their tormentors. The parents should have to hear what their kids are hearing without it first being sterilized first.

Many others feel the same way that I do.

http://entertainment.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/13/10655561-kids-cant-see-anti-bullying-film-due-to-r-rating

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/13/3488959/depp-streep-join-call-to-lower.html

And this article gives an interesting debate about movie ratings in general, noting that The Hunger Games movie, about a teenage deathmatch, only received a PG-13 rating.

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/03/19/3500438/the-hunger-games-bully-prompt.html

I guess kids are allowed to kill each other, as long as they don't say "f***" while doing it.

What do you think?

I agree that there seem to be incommensurate criteria associated with the censorship of certain media. I would suppose that kids know all the curse words well before puberty these days. Rating movies or anything else based on language content is about as silly and unimportant a thing to do as I can think of.